SHATTERED INNOCENCE: TRANSMIGRATED INTO A NOVEL AS AN EXTRA

The air settled into something more composed—if only on the surface. Corvina, ever the professional, quickly remembered her role as the host despite the utterly bizarre turn this meeting had taken.

She shifted back into her chair, exhaling quietly as her attendant approached the table with a well-balanced tray, carefully pouring tea into each delicate porcelain cup. The rhythmic sound of liquid meeting ceramic was a welcome moment of calm amidst the lingering tension.

Lucavion, ever the opportunist, leaned forward, watching with mild interest. “Ah, at least someone here treats me well,” he mused as the warm cup was placed before him.

Aeliana shot him a look. “You should be grateful anyone tolerates you at all.”

Lucavion smirked but said nothing, choosing instead to lift his cup with a knowing glint in his eye.

Corvina’s lips twitched, but she said nothing, accepting her own tea with a graceful nod to her attendant before finally turning her attention back to the real matters at hand.

She was still wrapping her mind around Lady Aeliana’s presence here—still processing the utterly baffling reality of the noblewoman’s self-imposed supervision of Lucavion—but there were far more pressing concerns that needed to be addressed first.

The expedition.

She set her cup down lightly, her fingers tracing the rim as she regarded the two across from her. Then, with practiced ease, she steered the conversation toward the matter she could not afford to leave unspoken.

“The failed expedition,” she began smoothly, her voice calm yet carrying weight. “I assume you have something to say about it.”

Aeliana, who had just been reaching for her cup, stilled. Her amber eyes flicked up to meet Corvina’s, the poised expression on her face unreadable.

Lucavion let out a quiet hum, swirling the tea in his cup lazily. “That’s a rather broad topic, Guildmaster.”

Corvina’s sharp gaze landed on him, unamused. “Then let’s narrow it down.”

A beat of silence.

Then—

“You were there, weren’t you?” Corvina’s voice was steady, but the question carried a deliberate weight. “You fought the Kraken.”

Corvina knew she had to tread carefully. As much as she wanted answers, she could not simply demand them from Aeliana.

Not outright.

For all that she was Guildmaster, her rank did not surpass that of the Duke’s daughter. And while Corvina had little patience for the formalities of noble hierarchy, she was not reckless enough to overstep where it truly mattered.

However—

Lucavion had brought Aeliana here.

That alone spoke volumes.

Lucavion was calculating, a man who did not move without reason. If he had brought Lady Aeliana Thaddeus into her guild, it meant he trusted her enough to hear the truth.

So she would ask.

She placed her cup down lightly, her fingers resting against the porcelain for a moment before she spoke.

“You fought the Kraken,” she repeated, her voice steady as her gaze locked onto Lucavion.

Lucavion smirked, setting his cup down. “Yes.”

“And you both survived.”

Aeliana gave a quiet, almost imperceptible sigh. “Clearly.”

Corvina ignored the bite in her tone. “Then I must ask you both—what happened?”

Lucavion stretched slightly, as though considering where to begin. “It’s simple, really. The expedition was going as planned until it appeared.”

Corvina’s fingers tightened slightly against the table.

“The Kraken,” she murmured.

Lucavion gave a small nod. “It surfaced without warning. No shift in the tides, no rumblings from the deep—just there, tearing through ships and stations before anyone could react.”

Corvina exhaled through her nose.

A complete disaster.

Even worse than the reports had suggested.

She shifted her gaze toward Aeliana, watching her reaction. The noblewoman’s face remained unreadable, her hands resting against the table, fingers lightly curled around her teacup.

“And the others?” Corvina pressed.

Lucavion tilted his head. “Which others?”

“The adventurers.”

Lucavion went quiet for a brief moment. Not out of hesitation, but deliberation.

Corvina leaned forward slightly. “They were swallowed by the vortexes. I need to know what happened to them.”

Aeliana’s expression darkened slightly.

Lucavion exhaled, his smirk fading just slightly. “I won’t sugarcoat it, Corvina.” His voice lost its usual teasing lilt. “It was chaos. Once the Kraken emerged, the entire formation collapsed. The vortexes weren’t just pulling people under—they were tearing them away.”

Corvina’s stomach tightened.

She had suspected as much.

Still, she had to ask. “What of their condition? Do you know if they—”

Lucavion leaned back in his chair, his expression unreadable. Then, without hesitation, without even the slightest shift in his tone, he said—

“They’re all dead.”

His voice was calm.

Steady.

As if he had not just spoken a death sentence upon the missing adventurers.

Corvina’s fingers twitched slightly against the porcelain of her teacup. The way he said it—so certain—sent a quiet chill through her.

She inhaled slowly, controlling her expression. “How are you so sure?”

Lucavion exhaled through his nose, tapping a single finger against the rim of his cup. “Because I saw it.”

A beat of silence.

Then, he elaborated.

“The vortexes didn’t just swallow them,” he murmured. “They took us somewhere else. Somewhere… far worse.”

Corvina narrowed her eyes slightly, absorbing his words. “Where?”

Lucavion tilted his head slightly, gaze flickering with something unreadable. “If I had to describe it… A land untouched by mercy. The moment we arrived, the air was different. The world was different. And the creatures?” He exhaled, shaking his head slightly. “Vastly beyond what you’ve seen.”

Corvina frowned. “Beyond?”

Aeliana, who had remained mostly quiet up until this point, finally spoke.

“He’s not exaggerating.”

Corvina turned her attention to her, taking in the solemnity in her expression.

“The creatures there were unlike anything from our lands,” Aeliana continued. “Bigger, stronger, relentless. If you hesitated, you died. If you were weak, you died. And if you weren’t smart enough to move quickly?” Her fingers tapped lightly against the table. “You died.”

Lucavion gave a small chuckle at her bluntness, but there was no humor behind it.

Corvina felt a deep unease settle in her chest.

She had known the vortexes were unnatural. That something had happened beyond them. But to hear it confirmed—to hear that the adventurers had been thrown into a land of death itself—was something else entirely.

Her grip on her cup tightened. “You said you saw most of them die.”

Lucavion’s smirk faded slightly.

“I did.”

A simple answer.

But a heavy one.

Corvina’s mind raced.

She had read the reports. The Duchy had searched for traces of the missing. The fact that Aeliana had been rescued had been the only glimmer of hope that others might return.

But Lucavion’s words…

“When we were brought back,” he continued, meeting her gaze, “no one else returned with us.”

The finality in his voice made her chest feel heavier.

“That’s my reasoning, Guildmaster,” Lucavion finished. “I don’t know anything else.”

Corvina’s frown deepened, her fingers pressing lightly against the table. Something didn’t add up.

“If that’s the case,” she said slowly, her voice carrying an edge of skepticism, “then why are you here?”

Lucavion blinked at her, then smirked. “Isn’t it obvious?”

Corvina’s sharp gaze didn’t waver. “Enlighten me.”

He leaned back in his chair, stretching slightly before resting an elbow on the armrest. “I’m here for business, of course.”

A pause.

Corvina narrowed her eyes. “Business.”

Lucavion nodded, completely unbothered by the weight of the conversation that had preceded this moment. “What else would I be here for?”

Corvina exhaled slowly, barely restraining the urge to rub her temples. “You just told me you were thrown into a land of death, that nearly everyone perished, that you barely made it back, and now you’re here—for business?”

Lucavion’s smirk didn’t fade. If anything, it deepened.

“Well, what else am I supposed to do?” He shrugged, entirely too casual for someone who had just walked out of what should have been his grave. “I came back with quite a haul. It would be a waste to let it rot, wouldn’t it?”

Corvina stared at him, trying to decide whether she was more exasperated or concerned.

Aeliana, however, just let out a quiet sigh, reaching for her tea. “You see what I’ve been dealing with?”

Corvina dragged her attention away from Lucavion for just a moment, eyeing Aeliana with mild disbelief. “And you willingly followed him back here?”

Aeliana lifted her cup to her lips, taking a slow sip before replying, “Someone has to make sure he doesn’t do anything stupid.”

Lucavion gave her a wounded look. “I take offense to that.”

Corvina exhaled sharply through her nose, forcing herself to refocus. Fine. If he wanted to act like this was just another day, she would play along.

For now.

She sat back slightly in her chair, her voice returning to its usual crisp professionalism. “Alright. If you’re truly here for business, then let’s get on with it.”

Lucavion’s eyes gleamed with amusement. “I thought you’d never ask.”

He straightened slightly, his tone turning just a fraction more serious. “Take me to the same room as before. I’ve got quite a lot of monster carcasses to sell.”

Corvina raised a brow, but she wasn’t truly surprised.

Of course.

Of course he had returned from a nightmare realm with goods to sell.

She closed her eyes for the briefest moment before standing.

“Fine,” she said smoothly. “Let’s see what kind of business you’ve brought back this time.”

————-A/N————

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